Nursing box for babies or similar purposes

ABSTRACT

A dust-free box for babies or similar purposes comprising a blower assembly and air filters for producing a substantially horizontal, non-turbulent and dust-free air flow in the interior space of the box proper, which flow is directed through a front opening. When the front wall is in a closed position, a relatively small slot remains open to provide this opening. When the front wall is in an open position, the inner surfaces thereof are kept out of contact with the outside air. Auxiliary means inside the box do not disturb the dust-free condition therein and/or are maintained dust-free during use and when not in use.

United States Patent 11 1 van Galen et al. Dec. 4, 1973 [54] NURSING BOXFOR BABIES OR SIMILAR 3,301,167 l/l967 Howard et al. 98/36 X PURPOSES3,380,369 4/1968 Allander 98/36 [75] Inventors: Piet van Galen; JohannesG. Th. van FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS Nes, Jr., bo h ofHeerhugOwaard. 1,152,604 5/1969 Great Britain 128 1 R Netherlands [73]Assignee: Pielkenrood-Uinitex N.V., Primary w. PP

Assendelft, Netherlands AlwmeyBayard Michael 22 F] d: Dec. 4 1970 1 57ABSTRACT [21] Appl A dust-free box for babies or similar purposescomprising a blower assembly and air filters for producing [30] ForeignApplication Priority Data a substantially horizontal, non-turbulent anddust-free Dec. 18, 1969 Netherlands 6918989 air flow in the interiorSpace of the box P p which flow is directed through a front opening.When the 52 US. Cl. 128/1 B from Wall is in a closed position, arelatively small slot 51 1111. C1 A61b 19/00 remains p to provide this pWhen Khe'front 58 Field of Search 128/1, 1 B, 191 A; wall is in an pPosition, the inner surfaces thereof 9 3 are kept out of contact withthe outside air. Auxiliary means inside the box do not disturb thedust-free con- 56 References Cited dition therein and/or are maintaineddust-free during UNITED STATES PATENTS use and when m 2,417,962 3/1947Armstrong 128/1 B 12 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures NURSINGJBOX IFOR BABIESOR SIMILAR PURPOSES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION lntcopending.applicationSer. No. 70,454, filed on Sept. 8, 1970,-an assembly for separating asubstanrtiallyrdust-free part from a space is described. This assemblyis intended for nursing patients which have had a ve ryspecial orradical surgical treatment, or suffer *from heavy burns or other skinaffections, when it is necessary to keeptheambient air as dust-freeaspossi- .bleJSincedust is acarrier of microorganisms, its absence is acondition for the absence of germs, which is required. in the casesmentioned above.

Theassemblydescribed in the above-identified .co-

pending application comprises a tent made of plastic sheets supported ona framework, and surrounding the ,patients bed at least at foursidestogether with the floorspace,if necessary. One end surface of thistent is formed by the output side of dust filters and theop- .positeendsurface is formed by a door hinged at its .upper edge. A horizontal anduniform non-turbulent air flow, produced by blowers and purified bythefilters,

.theblowers willbe reduced, sothat the air flow near the bed and thenoise level caused thereby will be reduced while the flow rateat thelower side of the door remains substantially unchanged and will bealways sufficient'to safeguard the dust-free condition.

Prematurely born children or diseased babies are generally nursed inisolation boxes (incubators), in

which'the temperature is kept at a constantvalue and theisolation withrespect to:the surroundings is maintained asmuch as possible. One ormore of thewalls is generally provided with gloves or self-closingtransfer openings, sothatthe baby may be nursed without openingtheboxuln some cases, especially when nursing seriously ill babies,such'boxes are insufficiently free of germs. On the other hand,dust-free tents according to the aboye copending patent application aretoo bulky and expensive for thispurpose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides a nursing box forbabiesor very small-children, which hasthe advantages of the known isolationboxes, and'may, moreover, be kept dust-free.

Thenursing box according to the invention is provided with a bottomplate at working height, partially transparent upright walls joining thebottom plate, and

at least partially transparent upper plate, and a back wallwith airsupply openings and dust filtersbehind it.

The airsupply openingslare connected to an air supply assembly havingone or more blowers. The front wall ishinged and, when in the closedposition, leaves an open air slot. This box is thus arranged so that asubstantially horizontal and non-turbulent air flow,extendiingoverthefull height and width, may be maintained,

which flow emerges from the box through the air slot.

ln'order to avoidturbulences occurring in this slot as muchas possible,.theuedge of the'front wall delimiting this slot is preferably graduallyrounded towards the outside.

The blowers may be controlled by means of limit switches operatedby thehinged front wall in such a manner that the flow rate of the air flowingthrough the slot, when thefront wall is in the closed position, issubstantially equal to the flow rate of air flowing through the openingprovided when the front wall is in the open position.

As is typical in conventional isolation boxes, gloves may be provided,preferably in the front wall, which, when not in use, are either blownoutwards by the air, or hangdown in the air flow in such a manner thatcontact of the outer surface with dust originating from the outside isalways avoided. Thus, it will not be necessary to clean these glovesrepeatedly.

The front wall is preferably mounted on hinges at its upper side so thatdust from the surroundings is prevented from falling onto the innersurfaces thereof when it is opened. More specifically, the front wallcomprises two halves interconnected by a hinge. The

hinge between bothhalves is oppositely directed to the upper hinge andthe lower edge of the lower half is guided substantially vertically inthe side walls of the box, so that, when opening the front wall, theconnecting hinge will be pushed either inwards or outwards de pending onits direction. ln the former casethe inner surface of the upper half ismoved into the interior of the box and the inner surface of the lowerhalf always remains in contactwith the outward air flow, so that it willremain dust-free. lntheother casethe inner surface of the uppervhalfmoves outwards, but is covered thenby the lower half, and, at thelateral sides, the side-,

walls extend outwardly so that the space between these halves remainslaterally closed and the dust-free condition is guaranteed.

ln order to avoid turbulencesnear the folded front wall, it is advisableto connect a guiding plate by hinge means to one frontwall half and toconnect it slidably to the upper wall or the other front wall half sothat, when these halves are folded either inwards or outwards, as thecase may be, the space between the upper wall or between both wallhalves respectively is smoothly closed.

It maybe advisableto provide, atleast near the lateral edges of thefront wall halves, air exit openings through which air flows to preventthe deposition of dust on the adjacent parts of the side walls.

The hinges mentioned above are preferably closed plastic hingesproviding adust-tight closure. The blowers for bringing about the airflow in the box are preferably mounted below the working surface. Theair intake opening for the blowers is preferably located below'thisworking surface. An oblique guiding plate is provided, which is arrangedso that the air flowing into the airintake enters at thegreatestpossible distance from the floor and as close as possible to theairoutflow opening. In this manner, entry of dust whirling up from thefloor issubstantially avoided and a part of the dust-free air leavingthe box is recirculated through the blowers.

The nursing box according to the invention is prefer- .ably providedwith a loose auxiliary bottom for supporting the baby to be nursed. Thisauxiliary bottom is carried by telescopically extensible supports whichare led through the bottom wall in a dust-free manner and are connectedwith a weighing apparatus positioned below the box, so that the weightof the baby may be continuously determined without the need of openingthe box or moving the baby.

Upright walls forming a bed may be provided around this auxiliarybottom. At least the front one of these walls, which is directed towardsthe front of the box, consists of two halves which are interconnected byhinges. The lower half is also hinged to the bottom of the box or alower edge of the wall assembly so that these halves may be foldedtogether with their inner edges contacting each other and the outersurface of the lower half lying against the bottom wall. Thus, when thiswall is folded down for nursing the baby, dust contact with the innersurfaces is avoided, especially when the front wall of the box is open.

The upper wall, front wall and the side walls are preferably made from atransparent rigid plastic, so that a light source for illuminating theinterior of the box may be mounted outside this box and the lampsthereof may be changed without opening the box. Particularly the upperwall of the box is also transparent to X-rays and the distance betweenthis wall and babys lying place is not larger than the focal distance ofa usual X-ray tube.

The side wall of the box openings may be provided with closing means forintroducing ducts for air, blood or food supply and for connectingmeasuring instruments. These openings may be provided in one or morerotatable or reversible plates, so that the point of introduction may bevaried.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 a simplified isometric view ofa nursing box according to the invention with the front wall in theclosed position;

FIG. 2 a side cross-sectional view of the box of FIG. 1 shown with thefront wall in opened position; and

FIG. 3 a fragmentary isometric view of a plate for introducing ductsinto the box.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The box shown in the drawingcomprises a bottom wall 1 which is supported on the floor by means oftwo or more legs 2 having adjustable feet 3. A housing 4 for blowers 5,provided below bottom wall 1, is situated sufficiently behind thefrontside of the box to provide space for the legs of a person sittingin the front of the box. The bottom wall 1 is situated at a convenientworking height for sitting as well as standing persons. An air supplyspace 6 is provided on top of the blower housing 4 into which air isblown by the blowers. The front side of housing 4 is bordered by aplurality of dust filters 7, which are supported at the front side by anair grid 8. A unifonn horizontal flow of purified air passes throughthis grid.

The nursing box proper is delimited by the bottom wall 1, the air grid8, and side walls 9, which are preferably transparent, a transparentupper wall 10, and a front wall 11, which is partially foldable. A lamphousing 12, provided on top of the rear part of the upper wall 10, isseparated from the interior of the nursing box and the lamps areaccessible from the outside. The foldable part of the front wallconsists of an upper half 14 and a lower half 15. The upper half 14 isconnected to the fixed part of the front wall by means of a hinge 16 andthe lower half 15 is connected to the upper half by means of a hinge 17.The lower half 15 is provided with a gradually rounded lower edge 18.Furthermore, the lower half is laterally guided near its edge 18, inguides 19 of the side walls. As clearly appears from FIG. 2, the lowerhalf 15 will be moved substantially parallel to itself, when opening thefront wall, with the hinge 17 being pushed upwards. The inner surfacesof both halves l4 and 15 will then be turned towards one another andwill not contact the ambient air, especially since the side walls 9laterally close the space between these halves. In order to avoidturbulences in this space, a guiding plate 20 is provided, which isconnected at 21 to the fixed wall part 11 with its other end beingslidable in a guide 22 located on the lower half 15. When this wall isin the closed position, the guide plate 20 lies smoothly against theupper half 14.

It is also possible to use oppositely directed hinges 16 and 17, sothat, when opening the front wall, the hinge 17 is pushed inwards. Inthat case the inner surface of the upper half 14 remains inside the boxand the inner surface of the lower half 15 is situated in the emergingair flow end is, therefore, protected against dust. In this case a guideplate 20 may be used closing the space between the upper half 14 and theupper wall 10 in order to prevent turbulences in the air flow.

When the front wall is in the closed position, an air slot 23 remainsfree at the lower side, through which the air supplied by the blowers 5and emerging from the grid 8 may flow. As a consequence of the gradualcontour of the upper and front walls, a substantially nonturbulent flowis maintained inside the box. The flow of air supplied by the blowers isat a level where no objectionable noise is generated inside the box,rapid soiling of the filters is avoided, and the air flow rate throughthe slot 23, which is considerably higher than in the box, is sufficientfor preventing dust from entering. As soon as the front wall is opened,however, the blowers will be switched by the contacts of switching means39 in such a manner, that the air supply is increased so that the flowrate through the larger opening remains substantially unchanged, anddust is efiiciently prevented from entering the box, even though thefront wall is in an opened position.

Preferably, apertures 24 are provided in the fixed and/or movable partsof the front wall at least near the side walls 9. These aperturesdeflect a part of the air flow from the box along the side walls 9, inorder to keep those parts, along which the movable front wall parts aremoving, sufficiently dust-free. Such apertures may also be providedalong the whole width near the upper hinge 16, and continuous slots mayalso be used. In order to restrict the opening of the box as much aspossible when nursing a baby, apertures 25 are provided in at least thefront wall and gloves or self-closing means are fixed therein as inconventional isolation boxes. When not in use, such gloves will eitherbe blown outwards by the internal pressure, or hang down in the air flowalong the front wall, so that their surfaces which may contact the babywill be efficiently kept dust-free.

In FIG. 2 an auxiliary bottom 26 is shown in the box, on which amattress or the like may be laid. This bottom rests on supports 27,which are movable longitudinally with respect to the bottom wall 1 andare provided with dust-proof seals 28. A weighing apparatus 40 ispositioned below the bottom wall 1 and is connected to the support, thusenabling a regular and even continuous determination or registration ofthe babys weight without the need of opening the box or moving the baby.

Interrupted lines in FIG. 2 show an upstanding wall assembly 29 forminga-bed frame for the auxiliary bottom 26. The front wall 30 of thisassembly consists of two parts interconnected by hinges, the lower halfbeing connected at its lower side by hinges to the rest ofthe frame.This front wall may be folded down flatly varied at will.

FIG. 3 shows a plate 35 covering a large opening 36 in a side wall 9 forthat purpose. This plate may be fixed by means of screws insertedthrough holes 37 in the plate and holes 38 in the wall 9. Apertures 31are provided in this plate, which are situated at the upper or lowerside, depending on the position of the plate.

The upper wall 10 of the box is preferably transparent to X-rays, andits distance from the babys lying place is not larger than the focaldistance of a current X-ray tube, so that this tube need not be placedinside the box when an X-ray photo is to be made. The film holder may beplaced below the auxiliary bottom 26 without opening the front wall,since the air slot 23 provides sufficient space for that purpose.

It is advisable to keep the air entering blowers 5 as dust-free aspossible in order to prevent the filters 7 from being soiled tooquickly. In the embodiment shown, an upwardly directed guiding wall 33is positioned in front of the intake opening 32 of the blower space andis laterally closed by side walls 34. The air is sucked in along thelower side of the bottom wall 1, thus avoiding, on the one hand, dustwhirling up from the floor from being sucked inwards in a substantialdegree and, on the other hand, a part of the air sucked in is the airblown out from the box as indicated by arrows. Furthermore, a rapidsoiling of the filters is prevented by adapting the pumping power to thedegree of opening of the front wall, so that the air flow supplied is nomore than is necessary for maintaining the correct flow rate in theopening.

In this manner a nursing box is provided which is constructed so that adust-free surrounding may be maintained in all nursing and examinationcircumstances. It will be clear that within the scope of the inventionthe embodiment described may be varied in many ways.

We claim:

1. A dust-free baby nursing boxcomprising in combination:

a nursing chamber defined by a bottom wall, a pair of opposed upstandingwalls adjoining said bottom wall, a top wall extending between said sidewalls, a front wall adjoining said top wall and an upstanding back walladjoining said bottom, side and top walls and having air flow passageswhich substantially extend across the height and width of said chamberwith at least a portion of said top and bottom walls being transparent,the upper edge of said front wall being hinged to said top wall and thelower edge of said front wall being vertically spaced above said bottomwall to define an access opening therebetween when said front wall is ina closed position;

an air supply chamber positioned adjacent said back wall communicatingwith substantially the entire surface of said back wall;

dust filtering means interposed said back wall and said air supplychamber; and

blower means connected to said air supply chamber providing pressurizedair thereto so that filtered air flows in a substantially non-turbulentmanner, substantially throughout the height and width of said nursingchamber, from said back wall towards said access opening, the flow rateof said filtered air being sufficient to prevent outside air fromentering said nursing chamber through said access opening.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said front wallcomprises an upper section connected at its upper edge to said top wallby a first hinge means, and

a lower section connected at its upper edge to the lower edge of saidupper section by a second hinge means; and further comprises verticalguide means located on the inside of said side walls, the, oppositeedges of said lower section being slidably mounted in respective of saidguide means and said first and second hinge means being oppositelydirected so that, vertical movement of said lower section with respectto said side walls, causes the upper and lower sections to fold towardseach other.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said first and secondhinge means are arranged so that said vertical movement of the lowersection causes the inner surfaces of said upper and lower sections tofold towards each other.

4. The combination according to claim 3 including an air flow guidingplate which is hinged at its upper edge to said upper section near saidfirst hinge means and is slidably mounted at its lower edge to saidlower section.

5. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said first and secondhinge means are arranged so that said vertical movement of the lowersection causes the outer surfaces of said upper and lower sections tofold towards each other.

6. The combination according to claim 5 including an air flow guidingplate which is hinged at its lower edge to said upper section near saidsecond hinge means and is slidably mounted to said top wall.

7. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said front wall includesat least one aperture, located at the opposite outer edges thereof nearrespective of said side walls, through which a portion of said filteredair flowing along the inside surface of said side walls is dischargedfrom said nursing chamber.

8. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said first and secondhinge means are substantially air tight.

9. The combination according to claim 2 including a support structureresting on a floor on which said nursing chamber is mounted, said bottomwall being vertically spaced from said floor; and

- an air intake means having an intake opening which is positioned belowsaid bottom wall, said intake opening being directed upwardly from saidfloor and arranged so that a portion of said filtered air exitingthrough said access opening is recirculated to said blower means.

10. The combination according to claim 2 including an auxiliary wallassembly positioned inside said nursing chamber and defining a smallerchamber inside of which a baby can be placed; and

said auxiliary wall assembly having a front wall comprised of upper andlower sections which are interconnected by a hinge, the lower sectionbeing further hinged at its lower edge to the bottom wall of saidnursing chamber so that the inner surfaces of said auxiliary front wallsections can be folded towards each other and the outer surface of thelower section can be moved against the bottom wall of said nursingchamber.

11. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said front wall can beraised vertically to an open position to increase the size of saidaccess opening;

said blower means is capable of providing pressurized air flow at twooperating levels, the air flow provided by said blower means at thefirst operating level being sufficient to prevent outside air fromentering said nursing chamber through said access opening, when saidfront wall is in the closed position, and the air provided by saidblower means at the second operating level being sufficient to preventoutside air from entering said nursing chamber when said wall is in theopen position; and

said combination further including a switching means cooperating withsaid front wall and said blower means for switching said blower means toand from the first and second operating levels depending upon theposition of said front wall.

12. The combination according to claim 1 including an auxiliary bottompositioned inside said nursing chamber above said bottom wall forsupporting a baby to be nursed, said auxiliary bottom being supported onvertical legs extending through said bottom wall; and

weighing means, positioned outside of said nursing chamber below saidbottom wall and operatively connected to said support legs of saidauxiliary bottom, for determining the weight of the baby.

1. A dust-free baby nursing box comprising in combination: a nursingchamber defined by a bottom wall, a pair of opposed upstanding wallsadjoining said bottom wall, a top wall extending between said sidewalls, a front wall adjoining said top wall and an upstanding back walladjoining said bottom, side and top walls and having air flow passageswhich substantially extend across the height and width of said chamberwith at least a portion of said top and bottom walls being transparent,the upper edge of said front wall being hinged to said top wall and thelower edge of said front wall being vertically spaced above said bottomwall to define an access opening therebetween when said front wall is ina closed position; an air supply chamber positioned adjacent said backwall communicating with substantially the entire surface of said backwall; dust filtering means interposed said back wall and said air supplychamber; and blower means connected to said air supply chamber providingpressurized air thereto so that filtered air flows in a substantiallynon-turbulent manner, substantially throughout the height and width ofsaid nursing chamber, from said back wall towards said access opening,the flow rate of said filtered air being sufficient to prevent outsideair from entering said nursing chamber through said access opening. 2.The combination according to claim 1 wherein said front wall comprisesan upper section connected at its upper edge to said top wall by a firsthinge means, and a lower section connected at its upper edge to thelower edge of said upper section by a second hinge means; and furthercomprises vertical guide means located on the inside of said side walls,the opposite edges of said lower section being slidably mounted inrespective of said guide means and said first and second hinge meansbeing oppositely directed so that, vertical movement of said lowersection with respect to said side walls, causes the upper and lowersections to fold towards each other.
 3. The combination according toclaim 2 wherein said first and second hinge means are arranged so thatsaid vertical movement of the lower section causes the inner Surfaces ofsaid upper and lower sections to fold towards each other.
 4. Thecombination according to claim 3 including an air flow guiding platewhich is hinged at its upper edge to said upper section near said firsthinge means and is slidably mounted at its lower edge to said lowersection.
 5. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said first andsecond hinge means are arranged so that said vertical movement of thelower section causes the outer surfaces of said upper and lower sectionsto fold towards each other.
 6. The combination according to claim 5including an air flow guiding plate which is hinged at its lower edge tosaid upper section near said second hinge means and is slidably mountedto said top wall.
 7. The combination according to claim 2 wherein saidfront wall includes at least one aperture, located at the opposite outeredges thereof near respective of said side walls, through which aportion of said filtered air flowing along the inside surface of saidside walls is discharged from said nursing chamber.
 8. The combinationaccording to claim 2 wherein said first and second hinge means aresubstantially air tight.
 9. The combination according to claim 2including a support structure resting on a floor on which said nursingchamber is mounted, said bottom wall being vertically spaced from saidfloor; and an air intake means having an intake opening which ispositioned below said bottom wall, said intake opening being directedupwardly from said floor and arranged so that a portion of said filteredair exiting through said access opening is recirculated to said blowermeans.
 10. The combination according to claim 2 including an auxiliarywall assembly positioned inside said nursing chamber and defining asmaller chamber inside of which a baby can be placed; and said auxiliarywall assembly having a front wall comprised of upper and lower sectionswhich are interconnected by a hinge, the lower section being furtherhinged at its lower edge to the bottom wall of said nursing chamber sothat the inner surfaces of said auxiliary front wall sections can befolded towards each other and the outer surface of the lower section canbe moved against the bottom wall of said nursing chamber.
 11. Thecombination according to claim 1 wherein said front wall can be raisedvertically to an open position to increase the size of said accessopening; said blower means is capable of providing pressurized air flowat two operating levels, the air flow provided by said blower means atthe first operating level being sufficient to prevent outside air fromentering said nursing chamber through said access opening, when saidfront wall is in the closed position, and the air provided by saidblower means at the second operating level being sufficient to preventoutside air from entering said nursing chamber when said wall is in theopen position; and said combination further including a switching meanscooperating with said front wall and said blower means for switchingsaid blower means to and from the first and second operating levelsdepending upon the position of said front wall.
 12. The combinationaccording to claim 1 including an auxiliary bottom positioned insidesaid nursing chamber above said bottom wall for supporting a baby to benursed, said auxiliary bottom being supported on vertical legs extendingthrough said bottom wall; and weighing means, positioned outside of saidnursing chamber below said bottom wall and operatively connected to saidsupport legs of said auxiliary bottom, for determining the weight of thebaby.